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Websleuths News

Join Websleuths Radio for the final discussion of THE KILLING SEASON
with Josh Zemam, Rachel Mills and special guests including Bob Kolker author of Lost Girls

NY - Joseph Rodriguez, 4, New York City, 6 Sept 1936

The Doe Network:Case File 73DMNY

Rodriguez, circa 1936

Joseph RodriguezMissing since September 6, 1936 from New York City, New York Classification: Endangered Missing

Vital Statistics Date Of Birth: 1932 Age at Time of Disappearance: 4 years old Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 3'0; 35 pounds Distinguishing Characteristics: Black hair; brown eyes. Marks, Scars: Mole on his right wrist. Small scar above his right eye.
<LI>Clothing: A navy blue sweater with a red-striped collar and a yellow sweater underneath; white knickers with blue dots; and blue sandals.

Circumstances of Disappearance Rodriguez was last seen outside of his family's home at 1637 Park Avenue in Spanish Harlem (Manhattan), NY on September 6, 1936. He has never been seen again.
On September 12, the boy's aunt, Pauline Rodriguez, received a telegram that suggested Joe may have been injured.
It read: "Dear Pauline: Joseph will be back on Wednesday. Doctor will not let me move him." But Wednesday came and went, without any trace of the missing child.

Investigators If you have any information regarding this case, please contact: New York Police Department
212-473-2042

NCIC Number: Not EnteredPlease refer to this number when contacting any agency with information regarding this case.

I very much believe this little boy may have been killed by Albert Fish. He was in New York at the time murdering raping and or castrating little boys. His letter to the family much after the fact seems to fit in with his MO, and if he had tried to castrate the child, felt bad for some reason, and had a dr see the boy, perhaps he was being truthful, as much as his letters were crazy they were truthful. If the boy had died anyway, that would explain him being unable to bring the child home. I think it is a possibility, as he admitted at his trial he had tried to sacrifice a child before, and a passing car had scared him and he stopped. He did not say the name of the child he had tried to do this to, nor a date nor the child's age. But I am willing to bet the farm, it could have been Joseph, and perhaps he had called a doctor and told him it was some sort of accident, and when the child died, he probably used him for food which is what Albert Fish did, he was cannibal at the time.

In fact, I think it would be good if LE went to the place where Albert Fish lived at the time with his wife and their six kids. If they used ground penetrating radar they could see if there is any place where he put a "grave" or if there is a skeleton somewhere on the property. If there is a skeleton, perhaps it is Joseph and they could see if they could take DNA from the bones there and match them up to living family?

Aunt

Did he live with his Aunt? If so perhaps a female reletive took him just how the telegram was written the person had to have at least known the Aunt the person addressed her by her first name and also in the telegram it says the Doctor wont let me move him, suggestive of a female or at least someone that is a passive person. Did the police ever trace the telegram?

It's possible that the telegram sender took the name of the aunt from the newspapers at the time, if so it could have been anybody messing with the family. The telegram would have to be addressed so that might be a clue, maybe just a partial address was used. I'd be more inclined to believe the sender if the address used was accurate. Surely the police checked out and asked whoever took the telegram for a description of the sender.

I think it is possible that little Joseph was hit, by accident, by a passing motorist who then panicked and took the injured little boy with them so that no one found out what they had done. They could have then called him a doctor and thought he would make a full recovery at which point they would have returned him to his Aunt, but if Joseph later died of his injuries this would explain why he was never seen again and why no more correspondance was received.

I have not seen anywhere whether Joseph was living with his aunt, his parents, a large extended family, or what. Just wondering why the telegram would be sent to his Aunt Pauline rather than his parents if they also lived in the same household. You would think if the person sending the telegram actually knew Pauline then they would have signed their name. I had always assumed he was injured also, and you'd think it would have had to have happened close to his house, but in that case couldn't the person have just sent someone over to tell the family? Plus, why did they wait 6 days to send the telegram?
This all makes me think that the sender did not actually know the family, or else they did at least know who Pauline was but didn't want her to know who they were because they were actually responsible for whatever happened to Joseph. He could have already been dead when the telegram was sent. Or I was thinking maybe the person sent the telegram to buy more time to either dispose of a body or to get the living child out of town, such as in the case of someone taking him for their own or else selling him.
If he is still living, he would be 79 years old now. If he was raised by another family as their own child, chances are good that he is deceased from natural causes by now.